Download or read book National Assessment Governing Board and Voluntary National Tests written by Michael Guerra and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 17 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As the National Assessment Governing Board marks its 20th anniversary, it looks back at its stewardship of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) with understandable pride. NAEP existed for 20 years before the Board was established to provide an independent governance structure for the assessment. During its first two decades, NAEP tested only national and regional samples of students. Its reports were generally considered technically excellent. But while they may have been groundbreaking in the assessment field, they were little noticed and played virtually no role in shaping educational policy or practice. NAEP received little political heat in exchange for casting modest educational light--a tacit trade making NAEP non-controversial and inconsequential. For the past 20 years, the Board has been second-guessed often, but never criticized for politically motivated decisions. The Governing Board's political purity explains why the Board was eventually given the job of developing the Voluntary National Tests (VNT). This paper takes a look at the history of the National Assessment Governing Board and the Voluntary National Tests. Appendices include: (1) Archived Information for Voluntary National Tests; (2) Sec. 447. Prohibition on Federally Sponsored Testing; and (3) Tables about Draft Scenarios for the Proposed Voluntary National Test and (4) Implementation and Other Issues.
Download or read book Evaluation of the Voluntary National Tests Year 2 written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1999-11-17 with total page 109 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In his 1997 State of the Union address, President Clinton announced a federal initiative to develop tests of 4th-grade reading and 8th-grade mathematics that could be administered on a voluntary basis by states and school districts beginning in spring 1999. The principal purpose of the Voluntary National Tests (VNT) is to provide parents and teachers with systematic and reliable information about the verbal and quantitative skills that students have achieved at two key points in their educational careers. The U.S. Department of Education anticipated that this information would serve as a catalyst for continued school improvement, by focusing parental and community attention on achievement and by providing an additional tool to hold school systems accountable for their students' performance in relation to nationwide standards. Shortly after initial development work on the VNT, Congress transferred responsibility for VNT policies, direction, and guidelines from the department to the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB, the governing body for the National Assessment of Educational Progress). Test development activities were to continue, but Congress prohibited pilot and field testing and operational use of the VNT pending further consideration. At the same time, Congress called on the National Research Council (NRC) to assess the VNT development activities. Since the evaluation began, the NRC has issued three reports on VNT development: an interim and final report on the first year's work and an interim report earlier on this second year's work. This final report includes the findings and recommendations from the interim report, modified by new information and analysis, and presents our overall conclusions and recommendations regarding the VNT.
Download or read book Evaluation of the Voluntary National Tests written by Board on Testing and Assessment and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1998-09-14 with total page 86 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In his 1997 State of the Union address, President Clinton announced a federal initiative to develop tests of 4th-grade reading and 8th-grade mathematics that would provide reliable information about student performance at two key points in their educational careers. According to the U.S. Department of Education, the Voluntary National Tests (VNT) would create a catalyst for continued school improvement by focusing parental and community-wide attention on achievement and would become new tools to hold school systems accountable for their students' performance. The National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) has responsibility for development of the VNT. Congress recognized that a testing program of the scale and magnitude of the VNT initiative raises many important technical questions and requires quality control throughout development and implementation. In P.L. 105-78, Congress called on the National Research Council (NRC) to evaluate a series of technical issues pertaining to the validity of test items, the validity of proposed links between the VNT and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), plans for the accommodation and inclusion of students with disabilities and English-language learners, plans for reporting test information to parents and the public, and potential uses of the tests. This report covers phase 1 of the evaluation (November 1997-July 1998) and focuses on three principal issues: test specifications and frameworks; preliminary evidence of the quality of test items; and plans for the pilot and field test studies, for inclusion and accommodation, and for reporting VNT results.
Download or read book Reauthorization of the National Assessment of Educational Progress and National Assessment Governing Board written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Education and the Workforce. Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Youth, and Families and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A hearing was held on the re-authorization of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB). Mary R. Blanton, Vice Chair of the NAGB, spoke about its mission and plans for design changes under the re-authorization. She also outlined the role of the NAGB in overseeing the voluntary national test and discussed state-based competency measures. Michael F. Ward, North Carolina Superintendent of Schools, represented the Council of Chief State School Officers as he spoke on the importance of the NAEP and the NAGB. As a representative of commercial test publishers, Larry Snowhite of Riverside addressed several key issues regarding the re-authorization of the NAEP. Martha Schwartz, representative of a grass-roots organization focusing on mathematics education, urged the inclusion of content-based learning standards with a reliable test to match the standards. Christopher Klicka, Executive Director of the Home School Legal Defense Association, expressed concerns that expansion of the roles of the NAEP and NAGB would lead to increased nationalization of education standards and testing. Ambrosio E. Rodriguez , of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, also testified about the importance of high standards. Nine appendixes contain the written statements of these witnesses and remarks from two congressmen. (SLD)
Download or read book Authorization of the National Center for Education Statistics National Assessment of Educational Progress and National Assessment Governing Board written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Education and the Workforce. Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Youth, and Families and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Proceedings of the Joint Conference on Standard Setting for Large scale Assessments of the National Assessment Governing Board NAGB and the National Center for Education Statistics NCES Proceedings written by and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 458 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Evaluation of the Voluntary National Tests written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1998-08-31 with total page 86 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In his 1997 State of the Union address, President Clinton announced a federal initiative to develop tests of 4th-grade reading and 8th-grade mathematics that would provide reliable information about student performance at two key points in their educational careers. According to the U.S. Department of Education, the Voluntary National Tests (VNT) would create a catalyst for continued school improvement by focusing parental and community-wide attention on achievement and would become new tools to hold school systems accountable for their students' performance. The National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) has responsibility for development of the VNT. Congress recognized that a testing program of the scale and magnitude of the VNT initiative raises many important technical questions and requires quality control throughout development and implementation. In P.L. 105-78, Congress called on the National Research Council (NRC) to evaluate a series of technical issues pertaining to the validity of test items, the validity of proposed links between the VNT and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), plans for the accommodation and inclusion of students with disabilities and English-language learners, plans for reporting test information to parents and the public, and potential uses of the tests. This report covers phase 1 of the evaluation (November 1997-July 1998) and focuses on three principal issues: test specifications and frameworks; preliminary evidence of the quality of test items; and plans for the pilot and field test studies, for inclusion and accommodation, and for reporting VNT results.
Download or read book Proceedings of the Joint Conference on Standard Setting for Large scale Assessments of the National Assessment Governing Board NAGB and the National Center for Education Statistics NCES Executive summary written by and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 468 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Using the National Assessment of Educational Progress To Confirm State Test Results A Report of the Ad Hoc Committee on Confirming Test Results written by United States. National Assessment Governing Board and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Evaluation of Redesigning the National Assessment of Educational Progress written by National Research Council and published by . This book was released on 1996-09-12 with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Embedding Questions written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1999-11-17 with total page 97 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Policy makers are caught between two powerful forces in relation to testing in America's schools. One is increased interest on the part of educators, reinforced by federal requirements, in developing tests that accurately reflect local educational standards and goals. The other is a strong push to gather information about the performance of students and schools relative to national and international standards and norms. The difficulty of achieving these two goals simultaneously is exacerbated by both the long-standing American tradition of local control of education and the growing public sentiment that students already take enough tests. Finding a solution to this dilemma has been the focus of numerous debates surrounding the Voluntary National Tests proposed by President Clinton in his 1997 State of the Union address. It was also the topic of a congressionally mandated 1998 National Research Council report (Uncommon Measures: Equivalence and Linkage Among Educational Tests), and was touched upon in a U.S. General Accounting Office report (Student Testing: Issues Related to Voluntary National Mathematics and Reading Tests). More recently, Congress asked the National Research Council to determine the technical feasibility, validity, and reliability of embedding test items from the National Assessment of Educational Progress or other tests in state and district assessments in 4th-grade reading and 8th-grade mathematics for the purpose of developing a valid measure of student achievement within states and districts and in terms of national performance standards or scales. This report is the response to that congressional mandate.
Download or read book The NAEP Guide written by and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 84 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Prohibition on Federally Sponsored National Testing written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Education and the Workforce and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 54 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Reauthorization of the National Assessment of Educational Progress and National Assessment Governing Board written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Education and the Workforce. Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Youth, and Families and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A hearing was held on the re-authorization of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB). Mary R. Blanton, Vice Chair of the NAGB, spoke about its mission and plans for design changes under the re-authorization. She also outlined the role of the NAGB in overseeing the voluntary national test and discussed state-based competency measures. Michael F. Ward, North Carolina Superintendent of Schools, represented the Council of Chief State School Officers as he spoke on the importance of the NAEP and the NAGB. As a representative of commercial test publishers, Larry Snowhite of Riverside addressed several key issues regarding the re-authorization of the NAEP. Martha Schwartz, representative of a grass-roots organization focusing on mathematics education, urged the inclusion of content-based learning standards with a reliable test to match the standards. Christopher Klicka, Executive Director of the Home School Legal Defense Association, expressed concerns that expansion of the roles of the NAEP and NAGB would lead to increased nationalization of education standards and testing. Ambrosio E. Rodriguez , of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, also testified about the importance of high standards. Nine appendixes contain the written statements of these witnesses and remarks from two congressmen. (SLD)
Download or read book National Education Testing written by United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Appropriations. Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A hearing was held to consider the issues involved in funding the administration's proposals for certain educational testing. After opening remarks by Senators Kennedy (Massachusetts) , Specter (Pennsylvania), and Harkin (Iowa), the Secretary of Education, Richard W. Riley, spoke about the proposed tests. The Clinton Administration and Secretary Riley believe that a rigorous voluntary national testing system in fourth-grade reading and eighth-grade mathematics would determine how well students are achieving in basic skills. The proposed tests are an extension of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and would use the NAEP framework to hold students to high standards. Secretary Riley emphasized that these tests are voluntary and not designed to be part of a move toward a national curriculum. Senator Specter raised the question of delaying establishing the tests until a better national consensus is reached, and Senator Kennedy also commented favorably on the testing proposal. Senator Faircloth (North Carolina) questioned the usefulness of a voluntary test, and Senator Gregg (New Hampshire) questioned the participation of the Department of Education in the creation of the tests. Additional remarks were made by Senator Jeffords and Representative Goodling (Chairman of the Committee on Education of the House of Representatives), who opposes the voluntary national test. (SLD)
Download or read book The Language Police written by Diane Ravitch and published by Vintage. This book was released on 2007-12-18 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If you’re an actress or a coed just trying to do a man-size job, a yes-man who turns a deaf ear to some sob sister, an heiress aboard her yacht, or a bookworm enjoying a boy’s night out, Diane Ravitch’s internationally acclaimed The Language Police has bad news for you: Erase those words from your vocabulary! Textbook publishers and state education agencies have sought to root out racist, sexist, and elitist language in classroom and library materials. But according to Diane Ravitch, a leading historian of education, what began with the best of intentions has veered toward bizarre extremes. At a time when we celebrate and encourage diversity, young readers are fed bowdlerized texts, devoid of the references that give these works their meaning and vitality. With forceful arguments and sensible solutions for rescuing American education from the pressure groups that have made classrooms bland and uninspiring, The Language Police offers a powerful corrective to a cultural scandal.
Download or read book Grading the Nation s Report Card written by Committee on the Evaluation of National and State Assessments of Educational Progress and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1999-01-06 with total page 302 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since the late 1960s, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)--the nation's report card--has been the only continuing measure of student achievement in key subject areas. Increasingly, educators and policymakers have expected NAEP to serve as a lever for education reform and many other purposes beyond its original role. Grading the Nation's Report Card examines ways NAEP can be strengthened to provide more informative portrayals of student achievement and the school and system factors that influence it. The committee offers specific recommendations and strategies for improving NAEP's effectiveness and utility, including: Linking achievement data to other education indicators. Streamlining data collection and other aspects of its design. Including students with disabilities and English-language learners. Revamping the process by which achievement levels are set. The book explores how to improve NAEP framework documents--which identify knowledge and skills to be assessed--with a clearer eye toward the inferences that will be drawn from the results. What should the nation expect from NAEP? What should NAEP do to meet these expectations? This book provides a blueprint for a new paradigm, important to education policymakers, professors, and students, as well as school administrators and teachers, and education advocates.
